


Bright of Eye and Bushy of Tail

by elven_enchantress



Category: Frontier Wolf - Rosemary Sutcliff
Genre: Alternate Universe - Model, Gen, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-03-08
Updated: 2012-03-08
Packaged: 2017-11-01 16:34:20
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,565
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/358966
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/elven_enchantress/pseuds/elven_enchantress
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Wherein Alexios the srs business journalist meets Hilarion, the professional lounger, and they snark at each other and try to be professional, but Alexios has feelings and Hilarion smirks a lot. Like, an unhealthy amount.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Bright of Eye and Bushy of Tail

**Author's Note:**

> So, I was playing around on LJ, aka that site where no one posts anymore, when I stumbled upon a post by carmarthan talking about how a model au might play out, and thought, I can do that! And bam, this fic was born with a vengeance. Also, 'professional lounger' sounds a lot more dirty than it actually is. Like, maybe it's subtext for a stripper who hangs on poles but doesn't let their feet leave the ground. IDK, clearly this fic has not been conducive to rational thought.
> 
> Story Notes: Title is a line from Frontier Wolf. Also, this is very very gen, with only the slightest hints of ship.

Inspired by [this post](http://carmarthen.livejournal.com/399402.html) from [carmarthen](http://carmarthen.livejournal.com/) on Livejournal

 

`````````````

He’s not really sure what he’s doing here, except that’s a complete and utter lie. He’s here because he fucked up, big time, and there wasn’t really a punishment that he didn’t deserve, according to Uncle Marius.

 

So Alexios is here, in a room full of skull-piercing bright lights and harried interns brandishing vaguely threatening makeup brushes and curling irons at their charges. He doesn’t belong here; he knows that, as does every single other person in the room, apparently. He’s lost count of how many times a derisive smile has been directed his way in the past half-hour, but he’s sure it’s disproportionate to the miniscule amount of time he’s spent in this studio.

 

Alexios is here, here being a modeling studio named Castellum, because apparently Latin has been upgraded from a dead language to hipster-approved, and he will admit that it’s not really been that enjoyable so far.

 

Then again, neither were the newspaper offices, because everyone over there whispered behind his back about how he was only on payroll because his uncle was a senior editor, and how unfair the job climate was, so at least he’s not surrounded by a constant atmosphere of false joviality anymore. Castellum isn’t really any better though, because he doesn’t know anyone at all, and they’re still probably talking about the uncle’s boy who royally screwed up the election piece, but he supposes they have more practice in subtlety than his former colleagues. Alexios briefly wonders if the modeling world is as full of subterfuge and backstabbing as American television would have him believe. And then promptly realizes that he’s going to find out for himself in the near future.

 

Whether he likes it or not, this is his job now. He knows that this particular branch is looked down upon by those who speak the word “journalism” with the shining light of reverence in their eyes, and he knows that Marius is aware of this. And this is the reason he’s here now—and Alexios knows he deserves it. The rumors that are whispered in dark corners may have roots in jealously and self-doubt, but they amount to nothing less than the truth.

 

Alexios had been an inexperienced, over-confidant idiot who hadn’t thought of anything but how he would change the field forever, and bumbled his way from there on out. He knows better now—or, at least he’d like to think he knows better, but, well, it’s a little too late for regrets.

 

So, he’s here, ‘promoted’ to the bottom of the food chain, and staring at a roomful of people whom he understands very little, and who don’t care to understand him at all in return. He nods hesitantly to a group of girls carrying what appears to be a variety of hair products; they just smirk at him, and scurry off to the other side of the room as though he’s carrying the plague. Alexios sighs, and looks down at his folder; if he’s to do this, he’ll try to understand his assignment.

 

He knows the basics; some up and comer model named Hilarion is doing the shoot, and he’s supposed to get an interview with him. Alexios isn’t sure he’ll be able to talk to the man without somehow managing to ask a question about the name, and whether he has a very strange agency or very ‘creative’ parents.

 

He doesn’t get a chance to read any further in the file before someone lurches down beside him, jostling the papers in his hands before he shuts the folder with a definitive snap. He looks up to find an extremely attractive man smiling down at him in a vaguely predatory manner, while taking up an impossible amount of space on the bench for someone with such a slender frame.  Alexios is nonplussed for a moment, before the man sticks out his hand, still bearing the smile of the faintly manic. Alexios takes it cautiously.

 

“Hello! Are you new around here? You were looking around with the air of the condemned, which is pretty usual for fresh meat.”

 

Alexios withdraws his hand after the man lets go, feeling slightly alarmed by the metaphor, and all the joviality that is being directed full force in his direction.

 

“Um, yes. I am. New, that is.” The man’s smile has definitely begun to go the way of a smirk, and Alexios gets the feeling that he himself is the punch line to a joke only the other man is privy to. It’s a rather uncomfortable feeling, to say the least, but he gives himself a mental shake and makes a second attempt at a complete sentence.

 

“I just got here to do an interview, and this” he gestures to the calamity of the set, encompassing the frenzied assistants and sneering lighting coordinators in one sweep, “is all a bit intimidating. I don’t want to get in anyone’s way.”

 

“Oh, I’m sure you’re not in anyone’s way.” Alexios hears the sardonic tone hidden beneath earnest sincerity, and resists the urge to narrow his eyes. He doesn’t want to be here, and apparently the company isn’t going to be pleasant, but he _will_ conduct himself with more courtesy than his companion. And that means he _will not_ snap some juvenile comeback in the man’s face, and move to another bench. If this is mainly because there aren’t any other benches to move to, no one needs to know.

 

“That’s good to hear.” There’s a moment of silence where the man lounges on the bench some more, looking like he has the secrets of the universe in the palm of his hand, and Alexios attempts to project an air of professional rigidity.

 

It’s awkward, to say the least. However, it’s only been a few minutes of strained silence before the overhead lights start dimming, and the director is calling for everyone to get in place. Alexios recognizes that the shoot is going to start, and turns to the other man, who is in the process of slinking off the bench like a large jungle cat.  “I suppose I’ll see you around, ah...”

 

The other man grins, and this time there is nothing but pure delight in his smile. “It’s Hilarion.”

 

Alexios is left staring, bereft of composure, while Hilarion saunters over to the photographer.

 

~

 

Alexios will be the first to admit that he doesn’t know much about modeling, but even he can tell that the photographer is extremely pleased with Hilarion. The man’s poses entirely consist of him leaning on something, or holding up furniture by sheer force of his languid body posture, but even when he’s draped across a doorway he’s oddly compelling.

 

It’s disturbing, to say the least. Alexios is torn between a tug of despair when the shoot ends, and the urge to run far, far away. The latter emotion surges forward when Hilarion strolls over to him, looking much too pleased with himself. Alexios can’t even bring himself to be annoyed, rather than solidly impressed and a little awed. He tries to cover both with a strong mask of indifference and rigidity when Hilarion closes in.

 

“So, what did you think?” Hilarion is smirking again, and Alexios tries to think of that as a bad, bad thing. It doesn’t exactly work out for him, because then all he can focus on is the bow of Hilarion’s mouth, which _really_ isn’t an improvement.

 

“I think I’m probably not qualified to be doing an interview with you.” He answers, and it’s surprisingly honest. He’s not the person Hilarion should be talking to if he really wants proper publicity. He smiles down at his folder, a touch self-deprecatory, before glancing back at what he’s sure will be a wide smile of victory.

 

Instead, Hilarion’s smirk has faded, and he looks thoughtful. It’s the first time Alexios hasn’t seen him outwardly cheerful, and he’s a bit taken aback because this is also the first time Hilarion hasn’t curled his lip when he looks at Alexios. It’s strange, but also satisfying, because Alexios gets the sense that Hilarion doesn’t waste expressions of solemnity on many people. It makes him inexplicably glad that he deserves one.

 

As abruptly as it had disappeared, the curve of Hilarion’s smile is back, but Alexios likes to think it’s a bit more genuine now. Hilarion lowers himself down to straddle the bench so he’s facing Alexios, and chuckles.

 

“Well, I think you should do it anyway. After all, we’ll never know if you cop out and run for the hills. Besides, I’ve been told I’m great fun in interviews. Good times all around.”

 

“I’m sure you are.” Alexios can’t help it when his tone emerges dry as bone, but doesn’t regret it when Hilarion’s eyes widen and he lets out a startled laugh.

 

“So, the lone wolf bites, does he? If you can see through me that quickly, I’m sure we’ll get along just fine.”

 

Despite the fact that Alexios has been exiled to the land of models, despite the sea of self-loathing and anger he’s been wallowing in for weeks, despite all the interns that look slightly murderous when Hilarion smiles at him, despite Hilarion’s propensity to tease and Alexios’s tendency to take everything  much too seriously, he doesn’t doubt Hilarion’s words.

 

In fact, he might go so far as to venture that he believes them.  

**Author's Note:**

> I kinda want to write this bit where Connla and Cunorix are the models for a rival agency that used to work in conjunction with Castellum, until that 'Incident with the Horse' happened. And Hilarion gets Alexios to pretend model with him where they're only in faux wolf fur, but then he gets the photographer to run it as a print ad for wood cabins or something, and Alexios is forever embarrassed, but also happy, because everyone back at the newspaper office is shocked and secretly pining after his abs of steel. Someone stop me please.


End file.
